Denmark Genealogy Research – Danish Family History

4 Toolbar/DNA

Click on the toolbar above and one can see it bigger. Here is a photo of my toolbar. With a click on these websites, one can save a lot of time researching from site to site to solve family history mysteries. One can drag these links below to your toolbar to make your own.

These are old Danish books from lesptitsmobiles.com. Imagine the number of books each of these computer links has in them!

FamilySearch.org (This program contains my worldwide family tree, sources, and over 4 billion records for me to search. See 2. Family Search from my toolbar for a better explanation.

Arkivalieronline – se originale dokumenter på nettet(This record essentially holds almost all keys to Danish Family Research. This holds church books (kirkebogers), censuses, military registrations (Lægdsruller), probates (skifters), tax records, and more. Many of the other websites are indexed records of these records. Not all of them are indexed so one has to search the records for those family members who don’t have their information indexed.

Censuses – Dansk Demografisk Database – Dansk Data Arkiv(This is the simplified way to find a census that summarizes the names, ages, professions, location, and place where born after 1845. The “simple search” typically finds people the best. This can change so try the other options, too. I use the snipping tool to save the records. The search engine can sometimes have problems so I use both census links.)

Danish Family Search(I like to use this for Danish Censuses when I need an overview of a person’s life over the years, the percentage of parish records that are indexed, and police registration records in Copenhagen. This site also does a better job with phonetic spelling. It shows the years people were born instead of ages on the other census link. The census records are a bit more detailed and spread out so I usually like something compact when I am sourcing the actual document. )

Sall Data(This site is like arkivalieronline but it sometimes shows a second copy of the church books [kirkebogers]. One must know the parish [sogn], district [herred], and county [amt] while arkivalieronline only needs to know parish [sogn] and county [amt].).

This is the snipping tool that cuts around an image and allows one to save the image. Most all computers have this feature but one may have to search for it. Typically, I use this for census records. I used the snipping tool to put my toolbar and this photo of the snipping tool on this blog.

DNA Genealogy, the New Frontier, & Your Brick Wall

This information is valid to countries all over the world. The more people that are genetically tested with accurate family trees online with sources with DNA results the better it is for genealogists. It’s a new technology that will only increase due to more people getting the test done & more features to help with research offered over time. Genetic relationships don’t lie (It might say 1st cousin instead of uncle but there is still a relationship.) but family trees and occasionally records do. The further back one goes, the more likely there is an error usually 8 generations back on autosomal DNA. Five generations back it is very accurate.

Reasons to get DNA tested

Find new genetic link on family tree.

Find a close living relative to attain photos, stories, or establish a correspondence.

Help with a brick wall in genealogy. Someone may have solved it already.

Find parents or relatives if adopted.

Understand ethnicity (places in the world one is from)

This is a slide show that I used to teach a DNA class. This is the best way to see step by step how to do DNA tests and genealogy.

I have read about DNA in genealogy & felt that I needed to get my 2 great-uncles (age 82 & 89) DNA before they passed away since I was working on my Danish line. Their father was Danish. Since then I have tested 2 other great uncles age 98 & 86 on two other lines along with my father & 3 brothers (early 80’s and 70’s). Several family members have helped me purchase the tests. I FEEL THAT IF I DO IT NOW BEFORE ANYONE DIES, I WILL NOT HAVE ANY REGRETS. Money comes & goes but people can die at any time. It has been a learning process but over time these tests should save me substantial time.

I have already found a line using AncestryDNA that gave me several clues on my 5th great grandparent’s daughter from Norway. I only had her name on my tree. Through a DNA “Shared Ancestor Hint” I found a tree that had her spouse & children. A granddaughter immigrated to the United States & I found over 100 descendants through FamilySearch.org records with the clues to get me started in their family tree. I have found DNA can help with a brick wall if you connect with the right person, but one may find someone that they never thought of looking on another line instead.You never know what results you will get until trying.

I will be focusing on the big 3 that are used on most common in the U.S. for autosomal DNA & use Ancestry.com & MyHeritage.com to find ancestor hints. The other companies are great for finding more information for specific populations & deep DNA sequencing.

My DNA Helpful Tips

If you don’t want to post your tree on whatever site you choose, DNA genealogy will be next to impossible. (People are worried about security. I did a 10 minute Google Search on myself and where I live now, I found 4 former addresses, my maiden name, my parents’ names, and 5 of my 7 siblings. If I would have spent $2, I could have found out more information.) It’s a new technology so who knows what will happen in the future. In 2008, the U.S. passed the Genetic Information and Non-Discrimination Act to protect citizens from having their genetic information used against them for health insurance or employment purposes.

Be prepared for the results. There are many illegitimate births throughout history. If you don’t want to know about any possible surprises, don’t get the test.

DNA test the furthest person back (example=great-uncle) on the specific line you are researching that is alive. Test all the possible older people that you might research on any possible line you might research in the future before they pass away.

Here is my quick version summary of DNA tests= Each test is testing different snips on the DNA strand. Your snips are compared to other people’s portions, ethnic populations, and then relationships are formed.

23andMe ($199) does autosomal DNA plus medical tests about genetic tendencies, carriers of genetic diseases, and has the most accurate “Ethnicity Results.” It’s the most interesting test once you receive the results. Doesn’t have as big of a database for genealogy. Can’t import raw DNA from other sites.They also e-mail health updates on research. The test can be exported to sites like MyHeritage.com or other DNA sites or pay $40 to get on FamilyTreeDNA. Go to the list of other DNA sites above to use the genealogy data.

FamilyTree has autosomal, mitochondrial (Tests maternal line. Males & females can take this test. Goes much further back on genealogy.), & yDNA tests (For Males only & tests the paternal line. Does not change much during generations. Can go back 1,000s of years.). These tests are more specific other than the autosomal so they can go back further & have more accuracy. Family trees can be posted. The most scientific DNA test. Here is an excellent link to an hour Facebook program on how to use FamilyTreeDNA and it’s features. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QfI3iRnGDo. It was from the Southern California Genealogy Jamboree in June 2016.

Ancestry.com & MyHeritage.com (new- still developing) show common matches. MyHeritage.com will allow one to download Raw DNA from FamilyTree, Ancestry, & 23andMe for free but will be charging in the future. Their database is very popular in Europe so the trees can be very helpful in this area.

Look at International DNA tests for countries outside the U.S at the end of the section. 23andMe has around 50 countries that it ships to but I don’t have the complete list.

4. Other Web-sites (Most of these web-sites require GedComs to share family tree data and Raw DNA Data from sites like Ancestry.com, FamilyTreeDNA.com, and 23andMe.

Many of these other sites have people that are more willing to communicate about their family trees because it takes more work for them to upload their data to the sites.

a. DNAGedcom (http://www.dnagedcom.com)- Mapping program. Will actually show the matching segment of DNA. Can even do things like help determine the Jones family line DNA segment in Vermont or Hansen family from Denmark if there are enough relatives you have DNA for.

b. http://www.ysearch.org/ (This is to share y DNA (father’s line) from FamilyTreeDNA. I have had a hard time using this site recently so I have been focusing on other areas.)

The General Rule of Thumb is that one wants to go no lower than 7 cM on the Average Shared cM. The accuracy goes down if you go lower than that. FamilyTreeDNA, GedMatch, and many of the previous sites listed allow one to narrow down the search. Ancestry.com does their own matching parameters.

Autosomal DNA typical does 5 generations quite accurately but can go up to eight generations in many cases.

To Use the DNA results, I find it easiest to put trees in small specific groups that one is searching for. Example= My great-grandfather was Danish so I made a tree specific for him because my great-grandmother was Swedish. If I am working on the Danish line, I put the Danish line as the tree on all family members that descend from him. When I am researching a different line, I switch the tree to the line I am researching on each individual that might be associated with the line. If I have an 8 generation person back and find that there is a connection on 2 or more trees, I can feel more confident that this is a tree worth researching.

Find a program that will change you family tree to a GEDCOM file. Here is one program that works with several different family tree programs.

RootsMagic- FamilySearch (example shown below), Family Tree Maker, Ancestry, FindMyPast trees convert to GedCom for DNA (Look on my Slide Show above and there are pictures of how to do it.)

Click on Family Search icon then Login to FamilySearch.org with name and password. Put FamilySearch Id code to access the tree. I usually put at least 5 ancestors and 1 descendant. Trees can get really big if there are too many generations. It can take a while to download.

Hit “Close” then a huge pedigree will show up

Go to “File” upper left hand corner of screen then “Export”

I unclick “LDS Info” because I am not using in FamilySearch.

Save File as something like “SmithJohnAlbertAncestors” in your special GEDCOM

You are now able to import your GEDCOM file into places like Ancestry.com, MyHeritage.com, GEDMatch, FamilyTree DNA, etc.

If one is using Ancestry.com then go to “Trees” in the upper left hand corner then “Create & Manage Trees” then “Import Tree from FamilySearch” then add your tree. (I would add about 4 trees or more for yourself- Paternal Father, Paternal Mother, Maternal Father, & Maternal Mother.) My recommendation is to NOT “Import from FamilySearch” because the tree is too broad and one does not have as much control on how many generations one uploads.

Now I will show how I found the missing person in my tree that helped me find over 100 relatives (see tree above). I used this process on about 10 other times before finding this gem. The other trees had all the same information as my tree.

I went to “DNA” – “DNA Matches” – “Shared Ancestor Hint” then I compared my tree to their tree using the in the upper left hand corner (I have Windows Operating System so Apple products might be different.) then drag the Ancestry DNA from the tool bar to a different window than your family tree program (FamilySearch.org on this example).

In this case I was missing Arne Knudsen, Mari Tronsdatter’s husband, and children. This gave me clues to birth dates of family members so I could use this information to find records on FamilySearch and Ancestry to back up the information. This other person had already found some sources that I could copy. I was able to make a tree that was more complete than what this other person had with references but without these clues, they never would have been found. I am going to upload my Norwegian tree again and upload my new findings to hopefully find other family members.

International DNA Tests

Each country has different prices and shipping so check each DNA company in your country on your web browser.

AncestryDNA has been available in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia/New Zealand, and Canada. AncestryDNA is now available for purchase in 29 additional countries, from Asia to Europe:

Yes, we ship kits to most international locations. Standard shipping is by USPS First-Class Mail International. There are some countries where shipping requires special processing. These countries are Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. There are two countries, Sudan and Iran, whose customs restrictions prevent us from shipping to them. Due to the wide range of international postage costs, international shipments do not include return postage.

The table below shows the countries where we know there are potential issues that require special handling. Please do not hesitate though to contact us before ordering to confirm that we have shipped successfully to your location.

Country

Customs Disclaimer

Delays During Shipping

Federal Express International Recommended

Starting Federal Express Price (Up to 4 Kits)

Brazil

Yes

–

Yes

$45 US

Mexico

Sometimes

Yes

Yes

$75

Japan

Seldom

Yes

–

–

Russia

Seldom

Yes

–

$75 US

Saudi Arabia

Seldom

Yes

Yes

$55 US

What countries do you ship to?

23andMe currently ships the EU version of the 23andMe Personal Genome Service to the following countries:

Denmark

Finland

Netherlands

Sweden

Republic of Ireland

The availability of the 23andMe Personal Genome Service depends on various issues such as local laws about genetic testing, transportation ease, and sample transportation.

If your country of residence is not included in the list above, the 23andMe Personal Genome Service for the EU is not available in your country. You may have the option to purchase the service for the US; you can view a full list of countries where we currently offer the 23andMe Personal Genome Service.

It is important to remember that the features available to you through our Personal Genome Service may vary depending on your country of residence. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Customer Care.

This photo and explanation is from http://www.ghammer.dk/old_danish.htm. The first Danish build computer was called DASK (for Dansk Algoritmisk Sekvens Kalkulator). It was officially inagurated February 13, 1958. DASK was based on radio tubes and based upon a similar Swedish construction. The GIER computer was built around 1960 by the Danish company, Regnecentralen. The acronym GIER stands for Geodætisk Institut Elektronisk Regnemaskine). There is even a GIER simulator running GIER programs on a Windows PC. Computers and the internet come a long way since the first computer in Denmark!

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